Dating For Advanced learners
by coffeepot
Summary: Even a heartbreaker like Nick could use some helpful advice to improve his dating strategy!


Dating For Advanced Learners

„Oh guys, I have great news for you! You won't believe it but I met a person who can help us to solve our cases even more professional and quicker in the future!" Murray Bozinsky was nearly breathless with excitement stumbling up the gangway.

"Take it easy Murray! Do you remember what I told you? One step after the other! That's okay Boz…we are nearly done!" Nick Ryder held Murray's arm until the skinny scientist was onboard of the Riptide, on safe ground.

"Okay Boz. What important news you want to tell us?" Cody Allen asked amused confronted with the clumsy movements of his partner.

"You will be all of a tizzy! I met a person at the university…well to tell you the truth, a woman! She is really stunning! Julia…that's her name …is a psychologist and she works as a profiler for the police as well! Guys, she could really help us with our cases! You know she has written a lot of scientific dissertations….

"Murray, stop! Just give me a second here!" Ryder interrupted Murray's oral fluency.

"What do you want to sell us here? We were able so far to solve all of our cases without the brilliant help of a profiler…as much as I remember! Well, where exactly is your problem then?"

"Sorry Nick! There is no problem at all. But we could spare a lot of work with Julia's help and to be honest, she would consider it as a kind of scientific research – quasi without payment, just for fun! Sorry I wanted to say for research purposes! Things couldn't work better for us and for our agency! So to speak guys. I thought…you are interested…perhaps!"" Bozinsky nervously shrugged his shoulders and fixed an imaginary spot on the wooden floor.

"Okay Boz, let the cat out of the bag! Who exactly is Julia and how do you think our team-play should work?" Allen tried to relax the situation.

"Oh boys, you will love her! She is great…well and she has a doctoral degree as well!"

"What else?" Ryder thought out loudly.

"Nick she is extraordinarily nice and luckily she uses her head not only to brush her hair, you know! You should really give her a chance. By the way getting useful tips would really help our agency, of that I am more than sure!"

"Please forgive me Boz but you know I am more the defender of the usual methods…I can only speak for myself and I don't need a profiler! What about you, Cody?"

"On the other hand, we could meet her and listen to what she has to offer, Nick, who knows?"

"Okay, so we have a deal! You pick me up at the university tomorrow in the afternoon and I introduce you to Julia! Then you can pelt her with all your questions and convince yourself!" Bozinsky was visibly satisfied. "What do you say?"

"Oh, Murray that sounds like a lot of fun to me, really!" Ryder said with a sigh and in front of his inner eye, he saw a mouse with big glasses, silently coughing into a Brussels lace tissue while illuminating the most important criminal cases of the last hundred years.

"That's a great idea Murray! Let's meet tomorrow afternoon at 4 p.m." Cody said.

"Come on Nick don't be so stupid! It's really not that bad to meet one of Murray's colleagues? Sorry I wanted to say friends. Perhaps she can help us to work more efficiently in the future. If you want to know my opinion, it's worth a try!"

"Aw Cody, you know Murray's friends! Altogether pointy heads'! I start to feel poor before I even enter the same room not to talk about breathing the same air, man! By the way, we were able to solve each of our cases without help so far! I just do it for you and well of course I don't want to snub the Boz! To be honest I don't want to get to know a woman who isn't able to have a 'normal' conversation if your own IQ doesn't range in astronomical heights and who certainly starts to hyperventilate as soon as things start to get hairy! I hate that!" Ryder moaned.

"Buddy, try to relax! You really shouldn't make statements like that at the forefront! Who knows? Perhaps Julia is a very patent lady!"

"Hi, guys! You are to the tick!" Murray greeted his friends the next day at the university.

"Julia is still in a conversation with a student of hers but she will meet us in my office in a few minutes!"

Ryder held his breath when Julia entered Bozinsky's office, ten minutes later. Okay he had to revise the picture he has had in his mind! She was much younger than he had imagined her…she could have been a student as well and she was interesting. No, she was nice, very nice! Well she wore her hair in a bun and of course she had glasses…but she was very nice…petit, brunette…not like the other colleagues Murray had introduced to them.

"Hallo gentlemen! I am Julia and I am pleased to meet you!" She said and took away her glasses and shook Cody's hand and then turned to Nick.

"Murray has told me so much about your work and I am burning to learn more about it! I think we could achieve great successes!"

"Could we?" Nick murmured and looked at Cody, begging for help.

"Oh, I see, you are not convinced that we could work as a team!" Julia was quite disappointed.

Wow, her eyes spoke volumes and Nick tried not to stare at her all the time! She was really a new category on Murray' friend' page!

"Okay, I don't want to strain your patience and I have two more talks to hold…what would you say if I would come to your boat after I am done? We could talk about your present cases and how my work could be of some use for you?"

"Julia that's brilliant, really!" Murray was happy: "That is a great idea! What do you say guys?"

"It's okay Boz! Let's meet us at the Riptide then!" Allen answered.

"Yes, we meet on the boat and solve a few cases …that shouldn't be a problem at all!" Ryder ironically added.

Later on the Riptide.

"Nick, please do me the favor and try to display the shadow of good manners at least! I know you are really pissed off but Murray just wants us to be more successful and Julia seems to be a nice person!" Cody reminded his best friend.

"Hey boys, shall I order pizza or would you prefer Chinese food?" Bozinsky babbled.

"Murray, I thought we work on cases we cannot solve without your girlfriend!" Ryder taunted.

"Oh Nick! You are impossible! Julia helps us - nothing more, nothing less! Her tips will be very useful…you'll see and they could influence our work in the future! But we have to eat, that's a matter of fact, right?"

"Okay that is true Boz, but you are the one who forgets to eat when you are busy! Is there something going on with you and Julia?" Allen asked with a grin.

"What are you talking about Cody? Julia is just a friend…a very good friend! That's all!"

"Okay, but you have to admit that she is really good-looking!"

"Of course she is but as I told you, we are just friends!"

At 19.30 pm, Julia asked for permission to come on board and Allen helped the young woman to step on the Riptide.

"Hallo Julia! It is nice to have you here!" The blond man greeted her.

"Hi Julia!" Murray caressed and kissed her. "Just give us five minutes. Nick just returned from the Mimi and is in the shower now. As soon as he is here, we can start!"

"Good evening!" Ryder grumbled when he entered the salon a few minutes later. He stood like frozen when the young woman extended her hand with a friendly smile: "Hallo Nick, how are you?"

Ryder was speechless. He had liked her in the afternoon but now her appearance nearly swept him off his feet. Her hair fell in soft red brown curls over her shoulders and she had changed her conservative-although feminine clothes into a slinky jeans and a white blouse…wow!

"It's really nice that you visit us here …on the boat…I mean that you…well, help us…how was the ride? Did you find us …without problems?" Ryder stuttered like a school boy.

"Thank you, Nick. In fact I didn't get lost – not a single time! Isn't it astonishing?"

Murray giggled and Cody elbowed him.

"Okay, I would say we turn to our original theme and after we have exchanged our experiences, we can proceed to the amusing part!" Cody proposed.

"Well please tell me where you stuck in your present case!"

"To tell you the truth Julia, we get along very good! But Murray thought we need professional help from outside! I can only speak for my own person but I really don't need help!" Ryder intruded.

"Oh, if it is like that, I think I am not required here!"

"No, don't get me wrong…but I don't understand this whole effort!" Nick answered.

"Aha I see – after our opinion, an amusing evening on a nice boat with a delicious pizza is unnecessary luxury!"

"No! Of course not! Would you just stop to put words into my mouth?"

"I never did something like that – I just quote you Nick…it would be the best if you tried to express yourself in no uncertain manner! It would probably help!"

"I cannot believe it…you interpret everything the way you would like it to be!"

"Not at all Nick but I am someone who calls a spade a spade and I am very straightforward…not prude at all!"

"Okay in this case I think I don't have to efface myself any longer!"

"To the contrary, Nick! Let out whatever it is that troubles you! And believe me I am well trained to see…no better feel that something goes against the grain for you! Am I right?"

"Oh are these vibrations that tell you about Ryder's inner feelings?"

"Not at all, this is a post-graduate result and lots of lessons learned!"

"I am really sorry! How could I- a fool without university degree- dare to doubt your competence?"

"You really did? I honestly thought you are a little uptight and intimidated! Normally my evaluations hit the mark!"

"Intimidated…me? I don't believe it! Uptight…what are you dreaming at night, Julia?"

"Well, to go into this in detail would take us too far afield! By the way, we don't know that well but you should try to answer the people in your environment more open…and less tensed – otherwise people could think that you are arrogant! That would really be too bad because arrogance and shyness is a different kettle of fish!"

Murray and Cody had followed the dispute open-mouthed, unable to intervene! It was both grotesque and absorbing, how grown up people, who barely didn't know each other, could fly at each other that purposefully!

"Hey, Julia and Nick, I would propose we start with our cases now, before the pizza will be delivered!" Allen relaxed the situation.

From this point, their discussion went superb; this was due to the fact that Nick had totally opted himself out and confined himself to the role of an attentive listener.

"Well and we are mobile even in the air! I told you about the Mimi! With Nick as an expert pilot, we are nearly unbeatable!" Murray explained full of pride.

"Well that sounds really interesting! But isn't it too dangerous to fly in such a…well… antiquated helicopter?"

That was the point when Nick's patience snapped: "Mimi might be old, but she is the safest and most reliable chopper you could imagine…if YOU could! Not everybody has the dash to take a ride with her but in our job we only have minutes sometimes and there is no time left to think about the risks! You see Julia…absolutely nothing for you!"That struck home!

"Nick, I am not afraid and I don't stop at nothing…believe me! And on my way here, I saw your Mimi and took some minutes to lionize this monstrosity…"

Cody nearly choke on his beer and Murray had to pat his back so that the blond man recovered his breath. Nick would surely strangle Julia for this offence!

"Mimi isn't a monstrosity…she is…is…reliable and safe! But how in this world would you understand what I am talking about?"

Cody choke on his beer again and Murray was only a second away from starting to hiccup! The whole situation got out of control!

"Well yes you can see it at the first sight!" Julia retorted and her green eyes were flashing.

"Offence is the best defense Julia, right? You would panic…you don't have the guts for a flight in the Mimi…just admit it!" Ryder teased and crossed his arms over his breast.

"I would not panic! Why should I anyway…I am not afraid to crash down! The old Lady will not make it more than three meters over the ground! Don't make a foul of yourself Nick! What should happen in a crash under these circumstances? By the way, you cannot really name it a flight!"

Ryder's temper was shortly before an explosion: "Okay let's fly…just you and me! Let's say tomorrow…just tell me the time!"

"I'll be off work at half past five pm….but it will get dark then!"

"No problem, I am able to fly in the dark! Just tell me if you can cope with it!"

"Of course I can cope with it! We meet at the Mimi at 18pm! Shall I bring something along?"

"Yes a parachute would be useful and perhaps a bible, just in case! Oh, before I forget it you shouldn't forget your compendium for applied psychology!"

The whole evening was a disaster and the struggle between Julia and Nick had nipped each attempt from Cody or Murray to bring them back into safe waters…or to talk about their cases!

Cody and Murray were just visitors or listeners of the open exchange of blows and their heads went back and forth as if they would watch a tennis match.

"Sorry, but I have to go home! Tomorrow I have two lectures to hold and in the afternoon I have a two hours training with twenty police officers and I'd like to be prepared!"

"No problem Julia and thanks again for your help!"Murray answered.

"It was a pleasure!" The young woman answered and looking at Nick: "See you tomorrow at 6 pm!"

Nick waited until Julia was out of sight before he jumped out of his skin.

"I need fresh air or I am going to explode!"

"Calm down Buddy!" Allen tried to soothe his angry friend.

"There are two options here! Either I go straight to bed and try to get some sleep or I go out and get drunk in a bar and have a punch-up!"

"Go to bed! That would be a clever solution!" Cody and Murray answered with one voice.

"Yeah! You are right! Good night!" Ryder went downstairs. He was confused and angry. Julia was the first female human being that had brought him out of his shell in this way! What had happened at all, the dark haired man wondered. He didn't want to admit that he had liked the flip flopping between them and their verbal exchange as well! Julia was prickly and lovely together…but he definitely didn't play in her league! Ryder let out a heavy sigh. She was highly intelligent, that was out of the question and a woman like her was surely not interested in a man who spent his life either by chasing bad guys through the streets or under an age-worn helicopter. He had nothing to offer, nothing to impress her! But given the facts, they had a kind of date and perhaps he could prove that he wasn't a stupid idiot, nor arrogant, neither uptight – but a man who really knows what to do when it comes to the point! Ryder fell into a restless sleep.

"What kind of performance was that?" Allen asked and shook his head.

"What are talking about?" Bozinsky wanted to know.

"What do you think, I am talking about Boz? I am talking about…about…well about what happened between Julia and Nick!"

"Cody, I am scared! You really ask me – Murray Bozinsky- this clumsy and quixotic jerk what is going on?"

"Murray you are talking in riddles here!"

"Cody if I ever had invented a tool that could illustrate peoples inner feelings in colors and lines we surely would have gotten a nice picture already this afternoon at the university from what happened between them! But tonight it would have been a masterpiece, believe me!"

"Murray you are talking nonsense! They were at it hammer and tongs! Do you remember?"

"That is exactly what I am talking about! There was erupting a lot of positive energy…you could feel it a thousand times! Unfortunately invisible…but I plan to work on it!"

"Boz, do you really think…there is a kind of affection between them?"

"Cody, even an idiot like me could feel it so there is absolutely nothing to misunderstand!"

"I always believed that if two people like each other, well everything between them is… well, in harmony! You have to admit their show wasn't harmonic at all!"

"Cody, you could call it the first gauging…just wait! It will get more and more harmonic even though it is hardly to believe at the moment!" Murray grinned.

Funnily enough, Nick was more than good-tempered the next morning and started to clean and polish the Mimi as if his life would depend on her appearance! Shortly after 4 pm he vanished into the bathroom and he was shining and smelling after one hour as well. Cody smirked at the thought of Murray's words.

"Nick, you just make a tour in the Mimi…okay you have a special passenger!" Allen teased.

"Right, but what do you really want to tell me?"

"Well, you are looking as if you go straight to a prom, buddy! Did a miss a detail?"

"Absolutely not, but it won't hurt to show up smart you know? The lady has bias enough anyway!"

"I see. Good thing that you don't tend to prejudge! It's really a blessing that you always step up to people without reservation, really!"

"Cody, do you want to stultify me here? What's wrong?"

"Everything is okay pal! I only hope she will not upset you so much that you cannot keep yourself to do a looping with the Mimi! No matter if Julia deserves it or not…I just want you to think before you act! That's all!"

"Okay, I got it Cody. I'll try my best and thank you for your compassion and most of all for your trust in me!"

Julia appeared exactly at 6 pm and Nick was more than delighted to see her.

"Here I am Nick! I bet you didn't think that I would come!" She wasn't less belligerent than the evening before but very nice looking.

"To be honest Julia, I didn't doubt it for a second!"

The young woman gave Nick a disarming smile and her hawkishness was broken.

"Okay, we shouldn't waste time! Where do you fly with me?"

"It is a surprise but if everything goes to plan, you will see an unforgettable sunset! How does it sound?"

"Promising…wonderful Nick! I am really excited!"

Ryder kept his promise and they flew into a wonderful sundown.

"Nick where are we now?"

"Around Anacapa Island: We will stop there…you will like it!"

Nick landed the Mimi near a small bay and helped Julia out of the cockpit.

"There is a beautiful small beach I'd like to show you. Wait a minute I have to take a few things out of the cargo hold!"

Julia curiously watched Nick as he fetched a picnic hamper and a plaid.

"I am ready! Take off your shoes. It's easier to walk in the sand without!" Ryder advised and stowed his boots in the hold.

Silently they walked to the nearby bay and Ryder unrolled the plaid on the still warm white sand.

"Sit down please!"

Julia did as Nick had told her and the dark haired man unpacked the hamper.

"Voila! I hope you like strawberries, Julia!"

"Oh, I love them!"

"Okay and what about strawberries and Champagne?" Ryder asked and removed two glasses and a bottle and put them into the sand.

"I am really speechless Nick! Believe me this does not happen very often!"

"Well if it is like that, it was worth the effort!" Nick murmured and filled the glasses. He sat down next to her and raised his glass to her.

"Let's drink on an unforgettable evening!"

" I don't understand Nick!"

"Well I was thinking if I should keep on arguing with you or if I should prove that I am not a klutz and well able to behave myself!" Ryder answered and tenderly put an arm around her shoulder.

"Oh Nick, you are not a klutz…not at all! I recognized it the minute I saw you!"

"And why did you mal treated me then?"

"Well, I wanted to find out if you are worth it…I mean a broken heart…some day!"

"Julia…I don't know how to explain it…you are totally different, someone very special…I knew it when I looked into your eyes for the first time! I will never break your heart! Never! I'll promise!"

"Nick, please don't let us make promises we perhaps cannot keep…let's just try it!"


End file.
